Petkovic and Jankovic both received wild-card invitations into the clay-court tournament. Petkovic was once in the top 10 but the German missed months of action through various injuries and has dropped to 103rd. Jankovic is a former No. 1 who has fallen to No. 16.

"I am glad my body has allowed me to play tennis again," Petkovic said. "It was also mentally important for me to play such a match against a top-20 player.

Petkovic dropped her serve early in the match but recovered to take the first set.

Serving for the match after breaking for 5-3, Petkovic fell into a 0-40 hole, only to see the Serb produce error after error and end the match with a backhand that sailed wide.